Van Buren Elementary, Janesville WI

Original Research by School Decision on Van Buren Elementary

Van Buren Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the Janesville School District. It sits in a residential area of Janesville, a mid-sized city with a manufacturing and commercial history that has seen modest population growth in recent years. The school itself is the kind of neighborhood elementary that anchors a community, drawing from the surrounding streets on the city’s near-south side.

The academic picture is a clear strength. On Wisconsin’s Forward assessments, students across tested grades posted proficiency rates that mark the school among the higher-performing elementary options in Rock County. When measured against the other nine districts in the county, Van Buren’s overall proficiency index lands in the top quartile. The results are consistent across subjects, with notably strong showings in fifth-grade math and reading, where proficiency rates are among the highest for the school. Fourth-grade science and social studies scores also reflect solid performance. Participation in testing was universal, meaning the results represent nearly every student, which adds to their reliability. For a family evaluating elementary options, these numbers indicate a school where most students are meeting grade-level expectations and a substantial share are exceeding them.

The student body is predominantly white, with a smaller share of students identifying as Hispanic and a modest presence of Black, Asian, and multiracial students. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a figure that aligns with a school serving a mixed-income neighborhood. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source materials, so a parent wanting to understand how the school supports those populations would need to ask the school directly. The same is true for discipline incidents, staffing ratios, and chronic absenteeism, all of which were not part of the provided data. Because Van Buren covers only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report.

The housing market in the school’s zip code shows home values and rents that have been rising, both above national averages in recent trends. For a family considering a move to the attendance area, this suggests a moderately priced market relative to the state, though affordability remains a consideration for renters. The city of Janesville offers a downtown town square, a park system with trails, and a mix of employers that include regional retail headquarters and manufacturers. The district has not announced major recent changes that would alter the school’s day-to-day operations, based on a review of publicly reported updates.

Van Buren Elementary fits a family looking for a solid, well-performing elementary school in a stable mid-sized city. The academic record is reliable across grade levels, the school is large enough to offer a full program but small enough to feel like a neighborhood school, and the surrounding community provides a range of amenities and employment. A parent who wants detailed information about special education services, English learner supports, or school climate will need to go beyond the test scores and talk to the school staff. But for a straightforward reading of what the available data shows, this is a school where most students are learning at grade level in a setting that reflects the broader demographics of Janesville.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 364%

School 64% · District 63% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 456%

School 56% · District 55% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 577%

School 77% · District 59% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 361%

School 61% · District 59% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 461%

School 61% · District 54% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 571%

School 71% · District 57% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Science

Grade 465%

School 65% · District 48% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 470%

School 70% · District 65% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

This schoolJanesville School District, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income49%Higher-income74%26 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income61%Higher-income59%2 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income59%Higher-income79%19 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income49%Higher-income80%31 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income57%Higher-income56%1 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income63%Higher-income86%23 pp gap